Crown Court procedure & plea

CRP.06 — Crown Court Procedure & Plea

Getting to the Crown Court

Three routes: (1) indictable-only offences (murder, robbery, s.18 GBH) — sent up under s.51 Crime and Disorder Act 1998, no allocation; (2) either-way offences where the magistrates decline jurisdiction or the defendant elects Crown Court trial; (3) committal for sentence (s.14/s.15 Sentencing Act 2020) where magistrates' powers are insufficient. Sending under s.51 is automatic — there is no longer any "old-style committal."

Plea and Trial Preparation Hearing (PTPH)

The first Crown Court hearing. The arraignment happens here: the indictment is put and D pleads to each count.

• Guilty plea → proceed to sentence (often adjourned for a pre-sentence report).
• Not guilty plea → the judge gives case-management directions and fixes the trial date; the Plea and Trial Preparation Hearing form is completed.

Reduction in sentence for guilty plea

Governed by the Sentencing Council Guideline (and s.73 Sentencing Act 2020). Maximum one-third reduction for a plea at the first stage (usually the first hearing/PTPH). Reduces to a maximum one-quarter thereafter, sliding to one-tenth on the first day of trial, and further (even nil) during trial. Get the trigger point right: it's first reasonable opportunity, not "before trial."

The indictment & key procedure

• The indictment must comply with the Indictment Rules / CrimPR Part 10; counts must be properly joined (founded on the same facts or a series of same/similar character).
• Crown Court trial = judge + jury of 12 (verdict can fall to 9). Judge decides law; jury decides fact.
• Majority verdicts (Juries Act 1974 s.17): permitted only after at least 2 hours 10 minutes deliberation; minimum 10–2 (or 11–1).

Common traps & distinctions

• Election is the defendant's, not magistrates' — only on either-way offences, only after the magistrates accept jurisdiction.
• Plea before venue (magistrates' court) precedes allocation; a guilty plea there means no allocation — magistrates convict, then may commit for sentence.
• No Newton hearing if the guilty plea is unequivocal and facts agreed; a Newton hearing resolves a material factual dispute on an agreed-guilty basis (judge, no jury).
• Don't confuse sending (s.51) with committal for sentence — different statutory routes.
• A fitness to plead issue is decided by the judge (Pritchard criteria; Criminal Procedure (Insanity) Act 1964), not a jury.